I Need to be Twins

I went to my granddaughter's class for grandparents day this past week. We had a great time. I have another little friend in my granddaughter's room. The school is year-round and my granddaugher has changed schedules (tracks) this year. With all of the that, this little friend has been in her class every year since kindergarten (they are in 2nd grade this year). I was immediately drawn to this little guy in kindergarten because he was struggling with all the basic skills. I was a bit concerned when I asked the teacher about him. Her response was that he, "just didn't know anything," as she rolled her eyes. I took offense to how flippantly she dismissed the situation. I went back to my son's home and told my daughter-in-law that I would love to live closer so that I could tutor this struggling boy in reading.

Not much has changed in two years. He was the only child in the class without a grandparent or parent with him last week. Of course, with my granddaughter's permission, he became part of our family for the activity. We played bingo and I was distressed as my granddaughter read every word on the card and he could not decode even the simplest word.

I went home and looked at my schedule to see if I had 3 hours (travel time and tutor time) to devote several times a week to this child. Unfortunately, with supervising student teachers this year, I just can't find that amount of time.

I feel the same distress I felt when one of my grandchildren had a very poor teacher a couple of years ago. It shouldn't be this way. We must support the children while they are in these crucial early childhood years. I think I need a clone...or maybe several.

The Open Classroom

I have the opportunity to supervise student teachers this school year. I've always wanted that assignment. I thought I was well-suited for it since I had numerous student teachers when I was a classroom teacher and I have supervised classroom teachers several times. One of my assignments is a school called The Open Classroom. When I visited for the first time last week, I was thrilled. Talk about using early childhood strategies! The entire school is built around hands-on experiences, working together, parent participation and creating a learning environment throughout the school. It was wonderful to walk into a fourth grade classroom and see tables instead of desks!! There were also several parents as well as the teacher and the student teacher. The school was friendly and inviting. Even the children in the hallway greeted me with a smile and a hello. The principal was just returning from outside where they were making the most of the learning environment while out at recess. The principal told me, "Every situation is a learning opportunity. Whether we are outside, in the hallway, or actually in the classroom. Anywhere the student might be is a teaching moment."

I'm so excited to visit this school this year. It reflects my personal philosophy about education and educational settings. This is how I ran my kindergarten and first grade classrooms. What a joy to see these basic child development strategies embedded throughout an elementary school. I have always been convinced that a child will always learn more when he enjoys the environment and is met on his developmental level.

Time...

I was asking my 'brand new second grader' granddaughter the other day how things were going in second grade. "Good," was her response. I asked what she had been doing the past week in her new class. "Well, we made visors the first day, with our names on them." I inquired about the rest of the week. She shrugged and said, "I don't know. Stuff." Somehow, there was only one stand-out memory from the week. I began to think about how time seems to pass much quicker for me than it did when I was younger. It becomes a challenge to create memories that stand out while time is whizzing by rapidly.
I also recently had dinner with a former kindergarten student, who is an adult now. I was taken back by what he remembered from my kindergarten class. He recalled our hillbilly band, learning how to read (yeah!) and the one time he got into trouble for talking too much. I don't even remember ever talking to him about behavior. He was a wonderful student. I think I was shocked that one of his first memories was one isolated time he was corrected.

Salvador Dali's "Persistence of Time" picture always makes me feel that we need to be more effective with our time, before it melts away. Particularly, when we work with small children whose brains are building life-long skills and memories. I'm committed to making myself create more positive memories for myself and those around me.

Beauty in Getting Along

I just finished watching my grandchildren for several days while their parents were out of town. I guess I had more energy when I was younger. :-) Caring for young children takes a lot of energy. I remember the comedian, Bill Cosby, once said, "People with only one child aren't real parents. They never had to hear, 'She's looking at me.' or 'He touched me.'" It takes effort to keep the peace when you have small children or are in charge of young children. Several years ago I was involved with a grant that concentrated on using social emotional strategies to avoid negative behaviors in the preschool classroom. It was great to watch teachers set up their classrooms and organize the day in ways that encouraged positive behaviors. I am so lucky that my grandchildren are well-behaved. However, I tried one strategy with them while they were staying at my house. I made a visual schedule for the day. It was funny how that seemed to please the kids and help them understand how the day was going to progress. Hmmm...it even worked at home. As my granddaughter said about the flowers in our yard, "It is beautiful when everything in a plant gets along." It is beautiful when a group of children get along.

It Tastes Ymmy

We have three new little turtles in the pond in our yard. It has taken a month or so for us to train the little ones to come to the surface (not swim away) and eat the food we throw on top of the water. The real trick is to encourage them to eat the TURTLE food, not the fish food we distribute for the school of fish which shares their pond. I suppose they might get nourishment from the fish food, but I know the turtle food is healthier for them in the long run.
It makes me think of beginning a school year with a new group of children. We carefully need to teach them to come to the surface to eat the right food. Of course, the teacher or caregiver must provide the right food. Sometimes that doesn't happen. Just like the little turtles, I suppose children may get some benefit out of inappropriate practices in the classroom. But, when teachers use appropriate teaching strategies, it is much more nourishing and beneficial for the child's entire life. I hope we early childhood educators will do our best to provide turtle food to help growth and development.

There's Always Ice Cream!

We went from a long wet, cool spring (unusual for us) to a blistering hot summer this month! We were trying to enjoy a family birthday barbecue this past Saturday (it was 102!) and one of my grandchildren reminded me that when it is hot outside there is always ice cream (she wishes).
That reminds me of the promises of life. When I graduate from college I can... When I finish this school year, I can rejuvenate... When I train him out of diapers, I can... Lots of expectations when certain journeys seem complete. I think we adults tend to concentrate on the end reward without enjoying the journey. However, it may help us weather the journey. I was complaining about the cold and rain in June, so I should enjoy my 102!
On the flip side of this issue are the children. Not knowing what the end result will be, they are alive in the moment. I was discussing inappropriate classrooms last week with my class. I was struck by how uncomfortable some teachers make classroom settings. Since children don't seem to worry about the end result (I can be free of this mean teacher at the end of the year...) they are stuck in the moment. It makes me very sad for the children in classrooms that are always so negative. I would assume it is a feeling of being trapped in a cage. Their situation is much more uncomfortable than 102.
I wish I could find all those children and give them ice cream.

The Good and the Bad

I was reminded recently about how there seems to be opposition in all things. We built a deck last summer underneath a very large and very old apricot tree. As much as I like apricots, I was wishing the blossoms would freeze this spring (which many of them did when it was 29!). The reason for my desire was that there can be so many apricots on that tree and they drop to the ground for several weeks. Our back yard smells like a winery. Also, I didn't want them falling on my new deck. The glorious shade provided by the tree is compromised during July because you might be fielding apricots when you are sitting underneath.
We talked in our Cognition and Creativity class this week about standardized tests. While they are usually inappropriate for early childhood, there is place for them at the table in later years. They do provide a framework and norm for learning the core curriculum. Unfortunately, they can be used as a single indicator of a child's learning. In the early education field we know that multiple measures must be used to monitor a child's progress and development. Just like the tree, the shade and the deck provide a great escape during the summer (basic information provided by standardized assessments), sometimes we get hit with apricots (major decisions made solely on standardized test scores).